The 2015-16 Indiana Fishing Regulation Guide is now available on eRegulations, a third-party online service. The Indiana Fishing Regulation Guide is a summary of Indiana fishing regulations. It is designed as a service to anglers and is not intended to be a complete digest of all fishing regulations. Most regulations are subject to change by administrative rule.

The eRegulations website has different privacy and security policies and contains advertising. The Indiana Department of Natural Resources neither endorses products or services listed or claims made; nor accepts any liability arising from the use of products or services listed.

To view a specific section of the online version, click on the links and icons below. This will take you to the appropriate section on the eRegulations website. For license exemptions, please refer to the fishing guide.

Indiana-Michigan Border Lakes

Residents of the state of Indiana or Michigan fishing in any of the waters listed below and who possess a valid fishing license for either state, are permitted to fish in these lakes while following the laws and regulations of the state having jurisdiction over that portion of the lake.

Indiana disabled American veterans can get a DAV fishing license application form from the County Service Officer or download the application form at fishing.IN.gov. Mail the form with a stamped, self-addressed envelope to the DNR Customer Service Center.

Things you can do

Catch most fish species year-round. Note: There are season restrictions for trout on inland streams, Lake Michigan and its tributaries, and for paddlefish on the Ohio River.

Fish with a trot line – a line that extends into the water from a fixed point and has smaller drop lines attached to it; limited to one trot line at a time with no more than 50 single- or multi-barbed hooks, and each drop line having only one hook. A legible tag with the name and address of the user must be affixed to each trot line.

Take carp, gar, bowfin, buffalo and shad with a spear, gig, spear gun, bow and arrow or underwater spear under certain conditions and on limited waters. Crossbows may not be used. See fishing.IN.gov for details.

Float or jug fish by using a buoyed container that suspends a single line and a single- or multi-barbed hook. As many as five floats may be used. Each float must be marked with the user’s name and address, and the user must be in constant visual contact with all floats. NOTE: Float fishing is not allowed on lakes and reservoirs for public safety reasons.

Use landing nets, gaff hooks or grab hooks to assist in landing legally caught fish. Note: These devices may not be used as a method of catching fish.

Keep fish you catch for an aquarium if the fish meets legal size and bag limit requirements.

Take smelt from Lake Michigan and Oliver Lake (LaGrange County) from March 1 through May 30. Smelt may be taken only with a single seine or net. The seine or net may not exceed 12 feet in length and 6 feet in depth nor have a stretch mesh larger than 1 ½ inches. A dip net may not exceed 12 feet in diameter.

Fish with up to three poles or hand lines at one time. Each line is limited to no more than two single or multi-barbed hooks, two artificial baits or two live bait harnesses.

Collect minnows and crayfish if you possess a valid fishing license. Some restrictions apply for possession limits and allowable equipment. See fishing.IN.gov for details.

You may use some species of wild fish as live bait, as long as the fish are caught legally and meet any size, catch, or possession limits established for that species. Goldfish may be used as live bait. Carp cannot be used as live bait at any location. Live gizzard shad and threadfin shad may be collected, possessed and used as live bait on the following waters only, but may not be transported away from the location where collected:

Brookville Reservoir

Cecil M. Harden Reservoir

Monroe Reservoir

Patoka Reservoir

Lake Freeman

Lake Shafer

Hardy Lake

Ohio River mainstem, excluding all embayments

Things you can't do

Take fish from public waters with a weir, electric current, dynamite, firearm, crossbow, hands alone, or any substance that may weaken or poison a fish.

Use a casting net to catch sport fish.

Take paddlefish from any waters of Indiana, including Indiana waters of the Ohio River, on a sport fishing license.

Exceed at any time the bag limit of fish while engaged in a day’s fishing.

Release live fish (native or non-native) into public waters without a stocking permit issued by the DNR.

Snag fish from public waters, including the Ohio River. Snagging is the practice of dragging or jerking a hook (or hooks), baited or unbaited, through the water with the intention of hooking a fish on contact.

Intentionally waste or destroy fish unless the species is required by law to be killed. This includes discarding fish entrails into any state waters.

Buy, sell or barter any fish, frogs, turtles or other reptiles and amphibians taken under a fishing or hunting license.

Boating

All motorboats used in public waters must be registered. For a copy of Indiana boating laws, write to DNR Division of Law Enforcement, 402 W. Washington St., Room W255D, Indianapolis, IN, 46204.

Only electric motors may be used on state-owned, leased or licensed lakes smaller than 300 acres. No more than two 12-volt batteries can be used to power trolling motors in these waters.

Life preservers (Wear It! Indiana)“WEAR IT INDIANA” is a public outreach campaign designed to encourage the use of personal flotation devices (life jackets) while boaters and swimmers are enjoying Indiana waterways.

A U.S. Coast Guard approved wearable personal flotation device (Type 1, 2, 3 or 5) is required for each person on any boat. Boats 16 feet and longer, except for canoes or kayaks, must also have one USCG-approved throwable PFD on board.

Lake Michigan and the Ohio River and boundary waters of the Wabash River have special PFD regulations. Call the USCG at (219) 879-8371 for Lake Michigan, (502) 779-5400 for southern Indiana, or see uscgboating.org for a copy of federal boating regulations.

Eating Fish

Eating recreationally caught fish from Indiana waters can be a healthy and tasty activity when you have the proper information.The contaminants accumulate in human tissue like they do in fish and can build to levels that could pose a health threat. The consumption advisory is based on a model that people are consuming 8 oz. of fish on 225 days each year over 70 years. Most anglers do not eat wild-caught fish nearly this frequently.

The primary concern is with the at-risk population. This population comprises women of childbearing years, nursing mothers and children under age 15. The reason for extra concern is evidence of developmental problems in babies and young children from contaminants at levels lower than what can be safely eaten by adults.

Eating fish from lakes and reservoirs is generally less of a concern. Contaminant levels are generally very low in lakes and reservoirs.Eating fish from rivers and streams is generally a much higher concern. All 13 water bodies carrying do-not-eat consumption advisories for all species are streams.

Consult the Indiana Fish Consumption Advisory for much more detailed information. The advisory can be found at IN.gov/isdh/23650.htm. For more information on the fish consumption advisory or answers to questions concerning the advisory, contact: Indiana State Department of Health, Environmental Epidemiology Section, 2525 Shadeland Ave., Suite E, Indianapolis, IN 46219, (317) 351-7190, ext. 262.